The Big Waverly Jones Mysteries Chronological Reading Order

A couple of notes here:

• I am not numbering anything besides the main books. There are many more shorts to come set in the past and there’s no telling what I will end up writing between the main books. So no “3.5” or “0.8” in the series (eg I will write the Homecoming dance stuff from the past, Waverly’s last conversation with Meadow, and so on; in 2026 I’ll have something with Waverly going through trying to find an assistant). All you need to follow the series is the main books. The other bits are fleshing out things for me and I share them on Patreon. Outside of two novellas, none of these are “official” releases; please do not add them to GoodReads etc.
• This is recommended for people who want to reread in the world’s chronological order. I do not recommend doing a first read in chronological order. Much of the time, I end up writing backstory shorts when they’re relevant to the main books (eg, when I write the Homecoming Dance, I’ll release it around the time that conversation comes up in the main book) so I always assume readers are familiar with the main books and don’t waste time re-introducing characters. Chronological order is not super friendly to brand-new readers. Please just start with The Killing Beach if you’re new.
• The short “Annika” is the only one where I give an actual year that anything takes place. I don’t think it’s extremely relevant but if you’re really paying attention to the dates (both in the book and the Murder Journal Timeline), you’ll see that the main series starts in 2024 and therefore the Crossroads Butcher killings last took place in 2012, and that gave me an easy way to breakdown the timeline here on the graphic.
• This is subject to change. Current version is accurate as of June 2025.
• All of this has been in my head so it has taken me a bit to properly write out (I do not have a murderboard for the series, my brain is the murderboard).
• “What the hell is wrong with you, Skyla?” Look, I ask myself that question all the time and I have no answer, this is just how I am.

Legend

• Bold is main series novel
• HC means it’s available in a hardcover edition (which might be exclusive or also at Patreon)
• “TITLE” means short story or novella

Waverly Jones Series Chronology (So Far)

• “Annika” (Patreon only, alternative POV)
• “Once Upon a Rainy Day” (Patreon version is rough, please read the version in A Wild Kind of Darkness HC if you have it)
• “Not Too Sweet” (Patreon only)
• “A Heart that Yearns” (Patreon only)
• “Bucket List” and “A Question and a Promise” (pt 1 and pt 2 of the same story, Patreon only)
• “Mystery at Red Fox Lake” (preorder incentive originally, now exclusive to The Killing Beach HC)
• The Killing Beach (1)
• A Wild Kind of Darkness (2)
• “Out of Sand” (AWKoD HC, alternative POV)
• “Take Your Dog to Work Day” (Patreon, Alone at Night HC)
• Alone at Night (3)
• “No Best-Case Scenario” (Patreon only, alternative POV)
• “Twenty-Nine” (Patreon only)
• Silent All These Years (4)
• “Haunting at Hayward House” (Storybundle exclusive novella in ebook, now in the SATY HC)
• “Bro Code” (Patreon in Aug 2025, also in SATY HC, technically an alternative POV)
• “Too Long to Stop Now” (Patreon in Dec 2025, also in SATY HC)
• A Dark and Distant Home (5) (May 2026 release)

Graphic Version